No Longer Left Behind
by WanderingRurouni
Summary: It's been one year since Edward Elric left on his journey to travel the world. Unfortunately, he didn't muster up enough courage to admit to Winry Rockbell how he really felt before the train arrived and interrupted him. After one year, he returns home, and has only three words for her when he needs to leave again.
1. Return to Resembool

Author's Notes: Hello, everyone! My name is WanderingRurouni and I'll be your author for this story.

No, but on a serious note: I started writing about a year ago, and all of my current stories are about Naruto.

But in all honesty, Fullmetal Alchemist is my favorite Manga and Anime ever. It is the best series I have seen, and (most likely) ever will see. I had written stories for Naruto because it's still on the air, and there's still room for development of characters, additions of new characters, and a lot of new content.

I've decided to write this story because I truly love Fullmetal Alchemist. I am hoping to have this be a somewhat lengthy story that can be entertaining to read for you all. There's only one question that I have to ask myself, since Fullmetal Alchemist has come to an end…

_Where do we go from here?_

So, I hope you join me, as I try and answer this question.

(P.S) To those of you who are following me because of my Naruto stories, read the Afterword in chapter 42 of _Cherry Blossoms in the Wind_ to see why I've suddenly(after 1 year, is that sudden?) decided to change what anime series I'm writing for.

**WORD COUNT: 5,169** (If this was 1 year ago, that would have been 5 chapters)

**CHAPTER RATING: M** (Sexually Suggestive Situations and Dialogue, Language)

**PUBLISHED ON**: **4/18/2014**

**DISCLAIMER:** **While I say that I want to write this story(which, I do) What I said in **_**Cherry Blossoms in the Wind**_** is still true, I won't be updating as frequently as I use to(maybe not for months at a time), but the chapters will be longer.**

**And I PROMISE you, that this story WILL come to an END one day. I'm not going to let it rot in the "In Progress" section forever. I promise!**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Return to Resembool**

"Next stop, Resembool!" The conductor's voice rang through the speakers of the train. "Next stop, Resembool!" A blonde haired man sat on in the train car wearing a brown duster, and dress pants he stared out of the train's window, and couldn't help but admire the lush, yet barren landscape of the countryside. Finally, after an entire year of traveling, he was returning home. The green hills rolled by as the train steamrolled ahead to the newly built station. He smiled while taking in the sight of the colorful hues, a great contrast that seemed to make the grey government structures that dominated Central City darker and more depressing than they actually were. He'd seen a great variety of places, and met a variety of people on the one year trek but he hadn't stepped into a military building since he was discharged.

The train came to a whistling halt; the conductor personally stepped through the car door, and greeted him with friendly smile.

"End of the line, buddy, are you the only one getting off here?"

"I guess so." The man replied while looking around, seeing no one else on the train. "Thanks for all of this, by the way." He added

"Thanks? I hardly ever get thanks around here." The conductor patted him on the back. "But, thank you, son! You just made my day." Immediately when his foot landed on the station platform, he heard the conductor call out to him again. "What's your name, son?!"

"Edward Elric!"

"Elric?! The Fullmetal Alchemist?!"

"Not anymore!" Ed replied while pulling up the sleeve of his jacket to reveal the flesh and bone of his right arm.

...

Walking along the still dirt roads, he recalled the most regrettable decision that he hadn't acted upon.

_..._

_He sat on a bench located on top of the platform, blankly starting up into the blue sky. His mind was racing, debating whether he should confess to her, or not. She, of course, was the woman who stood next to him, Winry Rockbell._

_The train's engine roared as it came closer. Ed jumped up in panic, Winry only responded with a confused expression. The train was pulling into the station as she spoke._

_"Ed, is something wrong?"_

_"Winry...I..."_

_The train stopped right in front of him._

_"What is it, Ed? Speak up." She demanded._

_"N-nothing, never mind." He mumbled._

_"Are you sure?" She replied with doubt. He nodded weakly. "Okay, then have a nice trip! Be sure to send us something in the mail, alright?!" She reiterated._

_He nodded his understanding, with a balled up fist in his left hand, she pushed him onboard the train, and waved goodbye to him from the platform._

_He watched helplessly while moving further and further away. He wouldn't see her in a long time, and he had lost the opportunity to tell her those three words that were so hard for him to say._

_"Damn it." He silently muttered to himself as she disappeared from the horizon._

_..._

And here he was again, walking down this dirt path, to the yellow house on the hill with the light that would beckon them home when they were children.

...

A blonde-haired mechanic meticulously pounded away at a sheet of steel, slowly shaping it to fit her new blueprint for an automail mechanism. Every strike she made with the metal sent super-heated sparks down towards the concrete floor. The sound of the automatic pounding almost drowned out the voice of her grandmother.

"Winry! Den's picked up the scent of someone special! An old customer that you haven't seen in a very long time.

Winry ripped off her welder's helmet, and burst through the door of her workshop to the dirt road; she looked down the passageway, and saw a man walking towards her, wearing an old, beaten, brown duster with visible tearing in the fabric. His hair was tied in a ponytail and fell across his shoulder as he bent down to greet the dog that had "discovered" him.

...

"Hey Den, how've you been?" Ed asked as he removed his hand from the dog's head. Den heartily responded with a lively bark. Ed looked up, and before him, he saw the sole reason he had returned. He noticed that she was dressed in a beige jumpsuit, common among engineers, blacksmiths, and of course, mechanics. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, only obscured by the green bandana that she wore. With one of the biggest grins he'd made in recent history, he walked up to her.

"I'm back." His muscle tensed as he looked into her blue eyes, and noticed tears beginning to well up in them. Winry wiped her eyes with her forearms before jumping towards him, and embracing him tightly.

"Welcome home," she whispered into his ear with a crackling voice. He brought his own had own hands around her and returned the embrace.

"You've grown!" An old woman's voice called to Ed. He smiled as he saw Pinako walking up to him, a pipe in her hand, and a smile on her face. "Are you hungry? We've got food cooking on the stove right now. Not to mention, an apple pie in the oven."

"That'd be great." Ed replied.

"It'll be ready in a while, clean yourself up before you eat."

Ed held his hands to his side, looked at himself, shrugged, and laughed it off.

...

The water streamed from the showerhead, running down Ed's body, and even gathered in the smallest nooks and crannies of his automail leg. He stood motionless, letting the beads of water run down towards the drain, with time to himself, he could finally begin to analyze the events that had just happened. The pleasant smell of the shampoo he used came to contrast the motor oil and grease. And even if it wasn't the most pleasant scent in the world, he still had to admit to himself, that smell always brought back memories of Winry; memories that tortured him after not seeing her for an entire year. He meditated on these thoughts in silence.

"Ed!" Her voice came through the door, breaking his concentration.

...

"Ed! You're in there, aren't you?! Answer me!" Winry shouted into the bathroom from the hall. She looked at her own oil-drenched jumpsuit and let out a deep breath. "Ed! I need to take a shower too!"

He didn't answer right away.

"Ed?! Answer me!"

"O-Oh! Okay! I'm getting out now!" he replied after a considerable amount of time.

Winry stopped when he answered; her eyes stared into the door, almost as if she could see through it. Her finger rested on her chin, and thoughts of him standing in the stall, with the water glistening down his muscular body began running through her mind. Her eyes unfocused, her tongue slowly caressed her lips as the images of him standing in the show continued to invade her mind.

It'd been an entire year, and she did take notice on how he'd grown.

…

Winry voice pierced through the walls and entered his ears.

Immediately his mind began to wander into different territory. Images of water droplets flowing down her pearly skin made their way into his head. Blood began rushing in his veins; it was nearly boiling with his mind racing.

"Ed? Answer me!" He heard her shout again.

"O-Oh! Okay! I'm getting out now!" He regained conscious control of his thoughts, slipped on his pair of boxers, and used a towel to dry his hair.

It'd been an entire year, and he did take notice on how much she had grown.

…

The door opened suddenly, Winry found herself staring blankly into Ed's golden eyes. Her cheeks turned red in embarrassment, and she swiftly turned her head down towards the ground.

"F-Finally! Jeez! What took you so long!" she stuttered while placing a hand on his arm and pushing him away; rushing into the bathroom, she slammed the door behind her.

"W-What's your problem?!" Ed retaliated.

"Shut up, Ed! Leave me alone!" She cried back through the door.

"Pfft. Whatever! With that attitude, it's no wonder why _you don't have a boyfriend!_" He replied sarcastically before turning towards the Rockbell Guest room.

"You just wait until I get out of here! I'm going to murder you!" She replied through the walls.

"Bring it on! I can handle you, no problem!" He shouted back.

…

Winry heard his loud footsteps echo through the halls. With a deep breath, she propped herself against the door, and rubbed her temples in frustration.

_I can't even look him in the eye. What's wrong with me?_

She took another deep breath, removed her clothes, and stepped into the shower.

_There has to be a way that I can tell him that I'm sorry._ She thought while letting the water run down her curves.

Then, she remembered what she had been doing in her off-time within the last year.

…

"Winry! Edward! The food's ready!" Pinako called minutes later. "Come get it while it's hot."

"Coming!" They both called out before they made eye contact again, and turned around awkwardly into their rooms. The sounds of two simultaneous doors slamming echoed through the house.

"Those damn kids, haven't they grown up yet?" Pinako said with disapproval before she took another deep breath from her pipe, and exhaled the smoke from her nostrils. "If only you could see your boy now…" She whispered while looking up into the blue sky.

…

The meal they had together was awkward to say the least, Pinako sat at the head of the table. Ed and Winry were situated right across from each other, forced to awkwardly alternate between making eye contact, and shifting their eyes down to the plates of food that sat in front of them. An awkward silence hung above the table and infected the atmosphere.

"Will you two stop it?!" Pinako shattered the silence with her raspy voice. She slammed her hands on the table, and began walking towards the door. "When I come back, you two better have made up!" she added before slamming the door behind her.

The awkward silence still dominated the air as she left. Ed and Winry blankly stared at their food, until Ed tried a spoonful of Pinako's homemade stew.

"…It's just as good as I remember." He whispered, more to himself than to Winry. She noticed a small smile on him, which brought a smile to her face as well.

"She's old, but she hasn't forgotten anything that even her mother taught to her." Winry added with a smile. Her expression sunk a bit. "Ed, I want to say that I'm-"

"Whoa!" He exclaimed. "This apple pie is amazing!" She saw his expression, now a full smile, filled with life. "I never had a chance to try it until now, but it tastes amazing, Winry! You really did a good job with this!"

She smiled at his compliment.

"T-Thank you." Her smile grew larger. "Anyway, Ed, I wanted to apologize. I didn't mean to snap at you earlier. I-I don't know what came over me."

He laughed…almost mockingly at her apology.

"W-WHAT ARE YOU LAUGHING AT?!" She shot at him. Her face emblazoned in scarlet.

"Winry, you're so cute when you act innocent and nice! _That's not like you at all!"_ Winry's face was hidden from view. He saw her shoulders moving up in down, and his own heart sunk.

"Winry…L-Look, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that-"

"YOU JERK!" She shouted with a high voice that pierced his ears, almost paralyzing him. He felt something warm crash into his face, and opened his eyes to find himself staring up at the ceiling, his vision blurred, and apple pie smudged on his cheek. "HA!" Winry exclaimed in victory.

He sat up, she looked into his eyes and saw anger; but was pleasantly surprised when she heard his arrogant, loud, and obnoxious laughter.

"You're not supposed to be laughing, Ed." She glared at him.

"Okay, but my apology still stands." He spoke while wiping his face with a hand. "I'm sorry for being so…heartless." He returned to his feet, and smiled. "Not just for this instance." He continued. "But for every instance where I've been that way."

"I-it's okay, Ed. I forgive you." She replied.

Winry walked towards him, with a napkin, she wiped the remainder of the apple pie that he didn't wipe away himself. He looked into her eyes as she crumpled the napkin in her palm.

"W-What's wrong…?" She asked nervously.

Ed's right hand found itself on Winry's cheek, marveling at the feeling of touch that had eluded him for so long; he brought her closer, she moved towards him with no reluctance, their eyes closed in unison…

"It looks like you've sorted everything out!" Pinako's voice entered the kitchen once again. They swiftly pulled away from each other; an awkward silence overtook the air once again. Pinako stared at them, and glanced towards the floor. "You're cleaning that up." She said flatly before taking another puff.

"Yeah. I've got it." Ed replied with a smile.

"We'll fix that leg up for you in no time, but you just have to clean up this mess before we do that. And it looks like even your automail won't escape unscathed." She pointed to his leg, emphasizing the crumbs and filling that lurked within the gaps of the stylized prosthetic.

"Well, it doesn't matter. I do have the best mechanic in Rush Valley to keep maintenance." He smiled over at Winry, who blushed and looked away at his flattering, and slightly flirtatious comments.

Pinako let out another smoke-filled breath, and raised an eyebrow.

…

The Sun hung high in the sky at noon, and its rays shined through the windows of the Rockbell household.

"Winry! I'm going out for a bit; take care of Ed's leg, will you?"

"I've got it!" Ed heard her reply from the workshop.

"And Edward…" She glared at him with suspicion. "Don't do anything that you would regret."

"Ha…ha…ha." Ed nervously laughed. "I won't." Pinako walked out the door, leaving Ed on the couch, as helpless as he has ever felt. His automail leg was in the workshop, being cleaned, lengthened, and refurbished; and the regular prosthetic that he used the last time he had returned was so short, that it didn't even reach the height of his thigh, let alone be suitable as a temporary replacement.

So there he sat, looking up towards the twirling fan, closing his eyes, and taking in deep breaths. His temporary serenity was broken when he heard the sound of clicking coming towards him.

Then he heard something drop; and a dog that could have been classified as dehydrated by the way he was panting. Den presented Ed with a book, as he bent down to pick it up, and noticed the seal that adorned the cover.

It was a transmutation circle: two circles around each other, a larger triangle broke through both barriers, protruding from them. On every side of that triangle, were smaller triangles each pointed outward. But then there was another triangle, it's vertices connected to the sides of the other triangles to form an equilateral figure; and within that triangle, there was a circle, completed by the negative space it created while colliding with the outer shape that it inhabited.

Curious, he opened the tome and began to peruse the text, it was about alchemy. But the age of this book showed that it was still in very good condition. He continued to flip through the pages of the book until he came across a piece of paper that marked a chapter.

It fell into his lap, his curiosity kept tempting him, with careful movements, and he unfolded the now yellowed and brittle parchment.

They were notes.

_Winry's teaching herself alchemy…?_

Den barked as if he was answering Ed's own thoughts.

"Winry! Can you come in here?! I need help!" he shouted through the house

...

Winry heard the door close behind Pinako when she left. Her previous project was still among other unfinished projects that were scattered on the concrete floor. With Ed's leg in her hands, she placed it in a tub, and filled it to the top with water. The crumbs from the apple pie floated to the surface, she diligently rubbed her hands across the chrome finish and felt the remains of the apple pie wash away. Letting the tub drain, she pulled out a leg that was completely clean, even if it wasn't in perfect condition and didn't have that metallic sheen to it. She placed it on top of a workbench, with a strong light that illuminated the workspace.

Ed's voice penetrated the walls and broke her concentration. She looked up towards the door, and passed through it towards the living room. Den barked as she entered. Slightly shocked, the image of Ed holding up the book with a confused look on his face slightly took her by surprise.

"What's this?" He asked.

"Ed, you told me that something was wrong? What is it?" she tried to avoid the question.

"You're avoiding the question." He acknowledged. "Why are you studying alchemy?"

"Ed, I-"

"You're not going to do anything crazy, are you?!"

"Ed, just met let me expla-"

"You're not planning on trying to bring back your parents, are you?! Because trust me, Winry, it doesn't work!" He emphasized his missing leg. "I MEAN LOOK AT ME!"

"Ed, would you just shut up for a minute! Just shut the hell up! And let me explain!" She blasted him.

"S-Sorry." He mumbled. "I just…I…" he couldn't bring himself to say it, and he hated himself for it.

"Ed, relax." Winry instructed in a calming tone, she took a seat next to him. "You've been gone for over a year…Did you think that nothing would change in that amount of time?" He was dumbfounded, he didn't want to admit it, but yes, he did. "I've just been studying it in my spare time, as a way to get closer to you and Al. It's good that you found it, now I can show you what I've learned." Winry walked back into her workshop.

She emerged minutes later with a solid and stiff sheet of metal, and placed it on the wooden floor. He took note that the transmutation circle on it was the same that was on the cover of the book.

Winry exited the room again, went into the nearby closet, and removed Ed's old duster, and a piece of red cloth. She came back into his view, and placed the two pieces of fabric onto the circle.

"I was planning this as an apology for you…" her voice slightly trailed off. "…But something entirely different almost happened." They both blushed at the moment they almost had in the kitchen earlier. "I taught myself while you were away." Winry bent down and placed her hands onto the circle. She closed her eyes, and it began to glow with a strong blue hue.

Ed was surprised when he saw the jacket repair itself. Not so much by the transmutation, he had done much more spectacular things in his day, but by the fact that Winry had done it so well. She pulled up the jacket, and smiled.

"Do you like it?" She asked.

"I-I…" he started with an open jaw. "I love it. It's just like my old one." She brought it over to him and draped it over his shoulders.

"I'm glad." Her bright smile brought joy, even to his usually cynical heart. She hugged him abruptly before pulling away again. "There's another thing I have to show you." She winked at him. "But first we have to get that leg fixed."

"Wait…What do you mean?"

"I'll show you in time; it shouldn't take more than thirty minutes!"

"Can't you just give me a hint?!" He shouted as she began to move out of his vision.

"Thirty minutes!" she shouted back.

…

_About Thirty minutes later…_

…

She emerged with his leg in hand; he braced himself for the most agonizing part of having automail attachments-nerve reconnections.

She inserted his leg back into its socket.

"Are you ready?"

"Give me a count down." She placed her hands firmly onto her automail creation.

"Five…Four…Three…Two…" She prepared her hands. "…One!" with a quick twist, she heard the metal interlock, and a small buzz of electricity.

Ed flinched in pain, but never made a single sound during the ordeal, no cries of pain, and no screams in agony. His head fell back onto the cushion.

"I…hate…that…part…SO MUCH!" Motion immediately came back into his leg, he was able to move his toes, and then eventually, he had a full range of motion again.

"How does it feel?" Winry asked

"Better than ever." He replied while standing.

"Great! Now follow me!" She took his hand, and tightly held onto it. With heavy steps, she dragged him to the back yard.

"What are we doing?"

"You remember how you and Al used to train?"

"What are you saying? You learned how to fight too?" His sarcasm had returned. "You used to just whack us senseless with that wrench, which was good enough, why not just stick with it?"

"Because I have something better." She smiled, reached into her pocket and revealed a small, metallic ball with a button on top.

"What is that thing, a bomb? A grenade? You're not going to use that here, are you?" His mouth slammed shut when he saw what the 'grenade' actually was. Winry pressed a small button on top of the sphere, it opened, and began to wrap around her hand. In the blink of an eye, her entire right arm was encased in the steel that shined with the sun.

"Impressive, huh?" She asked while shifting it around to give him a better view of the new mechanism. Her entire arm was covered in steel, it was strong and protective, but she was able to flex each of her fingers as if it were a glove.

"Very." He replied with an open jaw.

"It took a few models to get it up to this point, and it's still not complete, but I think I can still-"

Ed charged forward and threw a fist directly towards her. Winry blocked it with her new metallic arm, and pushed him away. She looked towards him in anger.

"Ed! What the hell are you doing?! Don't interrupt me like that!"

"When you're fighting someone, Winry, you need to be ready at all times, always keep your hands up, and always protect yourself." He readied himself again, and charged once more. "…First one to land a hit wins!" he set the rules of the match as he ran towards her.

"You won't beat me!" Winry called back and answered him with a charge of her own. Ed jumped up mid sprint, and pulled up his knee. Winry intercepted him halfway, catching his shin on her forearm; she pushed through him, causing his momentum to flip him over, he landed hard on his back against the grass.

Slightly dazed, he opened his eyes to find her standing above him with her fist raised. He rolled away with a smile as she brought her left fist down and struck the grass. His eyes and mouth opened in shock however; when she brought down her other fist.

It shot up grass and dirt as it drilled a hole into the ground the size of his head. He rushed back to his feet and saw that her breathing had quickened.

"It looks like that new mechanism is wearing you out, Winry! _What kind of terrible design is that?!" _He mocked her, knowing that a mind clouded in rage only meant more trouble for the person who was enraged. And he saw it in her expression, pure anger that he had insulted one of her greatest achievements.

"You little shit!" she shouted. "I'll kill you!" She charged again towards him, and swung wildly. Her recklessness was actually beginning to worry him, her swings were so swift and forceful, and it felt as if the air around them was going to cut him to shreds. He continued to dodge her attacks, and saw the effects of her aggressive nature taking its toll.

"Whoa, Winry, relax! Take it easy!" he called out to her.

"Shut up! I'll make you pay for insulting me…" she took another breath, and instantly fell to the ground.

"Winry!" He slid across the grass and caught her just as she fainted. "Winry, are you alright?" He saw that she was still breathing, but it was getting slower and then it stopped.

He began to panic, and then decided that there was only one choice to try and wake her up.

CPR.

He brought his gloveless hands to her mouth.

Nothing.

He brought his ear to the same area.

Nothing.

With a deep breath, he leaned her head back, and moved closer to her. His heart began pounding as he came closer to her lips. Within millimeters of touching them, he felt her breath exhale, and shot back up into a straight posture.

"W-Winry! Are you alright?" He asked. She nodded.

"The gauntlet takes a little getting used to, as of right now I can't have it on for longer than a few minutes." She took a few deep breaths before looking into his eyes, and his flush-red face. "Oh…and Ed…"

"W-What is it?" He asked nervously. She raised her left hand, and cupped his cheek.

"…always protect yourself." She smiled and lightly slapped his face. "I win."

"…You win." He agreed with a smile.

…

"Now, you have to admit, _that was some poor design_." Ed cried out sarcastically as he walked into the house. "Why would you pull that thing out if you haven't even been able to adapt to the side-effects yet?" He asked Winry while carrying her on his back.

"It's not like I have the time to constantly train." Winry began explaining. "It's not a main priority of mine, I haven't had the time to get used to the effects it has on my nerves yet." She defended her invention.

"Just take it easy." Ed commanded as he stepped into the living room. "How long do you think until you can move again?" He asked while laying her down onto the couch.

"Just a few minutes should be fine." She answered while supporting herself on her elbows.

"Do you think you can stay alone for a little while?"

"Den's here, so I'll be fine." Den barked at her answer. "Where are you going?"

"I need to see some people; people I haven't seen in a while. I'll be back."

"Stay safe. I'll be waiting." Winry said with a smile.

He walked out, and looked back to see her waving good-bye, with her faithful companion sitting by her side. He smiled back at her and turned to go meet two people he hadn't see in a very long time.

…

He walked down the dirt roads; his bare hands stuffed into his pockets, his steel-toed boots kicking gravel back and forth with each step. Along the way, he stopped by a small stand that sold flowers.

He walked with a bouquet in hand, and reached a hill with two tombstones at the peak. With a soft smile, he sat in front of them.

"I'm home." He spoke to them. In the silent serenity, he heard the wind blow against the grass, and looked across the fields, to see a giant white wave move across the land. "While I never claimed to believe in a God, I know that somewhere, you two are together, and happier than ever." He placed the bouquet on the grave that read 'Trisha Elric,' took a deep breath, and smiled with tears beginning to stream down his cheeks. "I can only hope that one day, Al and I will join you. And we'll be a family again." He looked up at the sky, and felt the water from his eyes roll down his face. "…wait for us until then."

Ed stood by the graves of his parents for longer than he had planned, he lost track of time. The only thing that snapped him back to reality was the sound of footsteps coming from behind him.

"Ed..." He heard Winry's voice. "You said you'd be back home soon.'"

"Sorry about that. I didn't mean to worry you." He brought a forearm and wiped his eyes with the scarlet sleeve. She stepped closer to him as she heard the crackling in his voice.

"Ed, it's okay. You don't have to hold back your emotions anymore." her voice began to weaken as she spoke. "Pain is a natural part of what we are...It's one of the things that makes us...Human, right?" His eyes shot open as she finished the sentence, bringing his face up, he met her blue eyes with his golden eyes. They were tear stricken, just as his were. Winry stepped closer to him, and gently wrapped her arms in an embrace. He didn't resist, and returned her warm hug willingly, with tears streaming down his face.

...

A few hours later, Ed sat in the guest room, looking over a single piece of paper; a pen in one hand, his head rested in the other. The sun had set, and it seemed like all was quiet; his mind was preoccupied, and the letter he was writing wouldn't actually be sent. An entire day had gone by, but still no progress had been made…well, progress was made, but it was stopped. He sat quietly, tapping his head gently.

_I'll do it tomorrow. I have to do it tomorrow._

He turned around when he heard the door creak open, in a panic; he turned and stared in shock as the door swung open.

"Ed, you're still awake? What's wrong?" Winry asked.

"Uh...I was just thinking. That's all." Ed stuttered. She walked over to him and pulled up a chair. She took a seat and moved closer to him; an awkward feeling began to rise in the pit of his stomach as he noticed that she only wore her underwear with a thin grey nightgown.

"What are you writing?" she asked while lifting herself above his shoulders. "A letter to Al?"

"Y-yeah, that's it. A letter to Al." She covered for him, and he took the story as truth. She observed the letter thus far, and let out a sigh

"How do you expect to write a letter without even addressing it in the first place?" She smiled. "Here, let me help." Winry's hand wrapped around his; guiding it with smooth movements, writing down his brother's name in a beautiful script that he had never seen before. "There!" she exclaimed while releasing his hand. His eyes shifted towards his hand, then her eyes.

"Ed...Should we finish what we started earlier…?"

* * *

A/N: Why end in a cliffhanger? Because the chapter itself became longer than expected! Don't worry though; next chapter will be up sooner than you think!

**Thanks for reading!**


	2. Three Words

Authror's Notes: **The Original Chapter Length was 2,989 words, but I refined it.**

**WORD COUNT: 2,985**

**CHAPTER RATING: M. (Sexually Suggestive Situations and Dialogue)**

**PUBLISHED ON**: **4/20/2014**

**DISCLAIMER: None...I guess.**

* * *

**Chapter 2: Three Words**

"Ed...Should we finish what we started earlier…?" Winry's words entered his ears. He sat in dumbfounded disbelief. She brought her hand to his, and pulled him up to his feet. "I have to tell you something" she dragged him to the bed, and sat down next to him.

"What is it?" He asked with blood rushing to his face. His blood was pumping, and his heart was pounding as she held onto his hand. her soft skin, yet firm grip was sending his nervous system into an uproar.

"It's been an entire year...but." Her grip tightened around his hand. "I have always loved you." she closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest. She could feel his heart racing, and heard it beating through his body. Ed didn't respond vocally, but instead, coldly pushed her away; shock and confusion broke through her; with eyes filled with sadness, and frustration.

"You're so embarrassing, Winry."

"What are you saying Ed...?"

"You're embarrassing me." He turned his eyes and faced her, looking deeply into them, he continued. "I was supposed to say this to you first." He took a deep sigh. "But it looks like you beat me to it."

"You mean..."

"I meant to tell you one year ago, but I was a coward, and ran away."

"You always run away." She replied rather mockingly, expecting a witty retort.

Silence.

"...You're right...I always do." He hid his face in regret. she caught the sadness in the tone of his voice.

"But that's not always true, Ed." She rested her hand on his face and brought his gaze back to hers. Blood rushed further into his cheeks as she held him, and let silence hang her conversation in the atmosphere of the moment. Winry's free hand took hold of his. "You may have run away one year ago, but you are here, right now, at this very moment." His eyes filled with shock, and his jaw was held open by disbelief.

His mind was blank with her words, his heart was pounding with her touch.

"Do you know why I came back?" he asked while bringing his forehead to hers and resting it there. he could feel her breath merge with his own as he held her. "I only came back for one reason...That reason, is you."

"You mean...all this time..." she whispered to him.

"I came back to tell you, that I love you." He whispered back., and froze when he saw her close her eyes, and slowly move towards him. He felt her soft lips press firmly against his, and fell back onto the bed with her urging. she moved away from him and smiled.

"Is this your answer?" She asked.

"This is my answer." He replied.

He felt her lips upon him again, and leaned back, falling deeper into the mattress as she removed her nightgown, and discarded his shirt. She marveled at his muscularly toned body. His eyes shifted up and down, taking in every detail of her curvaceous and beautiful figure. His blood was boiling with anticipation; she laid on top of him, straddling over his right leg. He felt the warmth of her body just hovering above him, his recently restored nerves constantly sending signals to his brain, pushing him to the limits of his patience.

This scenario played out so many times in his head within the last year.

He waited an entire year for this moment.

12 Months.

365 Days.

8,766 hours.

But he could wait no longer.

With a firm grasp on her hand, he stopped Winry in her tracks. Through deep, desperate breaths, he looked into her eyes.

"Winry, lay down. I'll take the lead from here. Just follow me."

He took her hand just as she began to speak, and let her down onto the bed. she lay before him, her body more magnificent and stunning than before. "Just do what feels natural." he whispered while descending her body. Winry's eyes watched him as he moved, she turned away with tense muscles when she felt him. With two fingers, he slowly took hold of her panties and let them run down her legs onto the floor.

Winry found that it was easier to follow his instructions than she initially believed, as if they were merely following instinct. Her muscles shivered as she felt him move down her body, and her nerves raged through her being as she felt his breath; with each one reaching her core, a pulse of pleasure rang throughout her body. Her hand moved to his head, and intertwined with his golden hair as she silently pleaded with him to hurry by gently pushing him towards her. Her muscles twitched with ecstasy with every movement that he made with his tongue.

"Ed...don't...stop." He paused, and looked up at her with confusion; with a tightend grip on his hair, she pushed him towards herself again before completing her command. "Don't stop." she managed to whisper through a deeper moan as he continued. She took hold of his wrist, and lifted his hand to her breasts; pushing it against herself, she cried out with deep, desperate gasps as his strong hands fondled her.

Ed only became aroused as she took control, firmly giving him directions while maintaining a grip on his hair. His tongue gently moved against her, the heat that emanated from her only causing his heart to race, and his blood to rush. With slow, deliberate motions, he touched her with his tongue, slowly moving up and down. Her hand tightened around his hair with every passing second.

"Ed..." she whispered. "I can feel it coming..." her grasp on him loosened completely, and in a single moment, he moved up and passionately kissed her.

Winry's back arched into the air as Ed met her lips, his hand rested on her lower back, trying his best to support her as she felt the overflowing ecstasy of her climax, and cried out desperately in bliss as he moved to silence her outburst of pleasure with a kiss that muffled the sound, and sent vibrations echoing throughout their bodies.

He slowly pulled away from her. Letting her take in another deep gasp for air.

"How did that feel?" He whispered.

"It was the greatest feeling in the world." She blushed while clasping her hands together, and wrapping her arms around his neck. Winry pulled herself to him, and met his lips in the air. She pressed her body up against his and turned him over onto the mattress. "Now it's your turn. Follow my lead."

She planted another wet kiss on his lips, letting a thin string of liquid stretch between them before she took hold of his wrists and pinned him into the mattress. He felt her voice pulsing through him as she moaned while moving her hips against his core; she could feel him growing beneath her through his boxers. Winry's grip released his wrists, she gently licked his neck, he gasped at this new sensation.

Gently, her hand slid across his toned body, and hovered over his pelvis; with two fingers she pushed the fabric away and slowly took hold of him, letting her fingers wrap around him, one by one; five separate cooling sensations ran through his body at her touch. The same soft, but firm grip she had on his hand was now upon him.

Winry slowly moved down to her knees on the floor, just as Ed had. She held him softly, and could feel him pulsating in the palm of her hand. Bringing her tongue to him, she gently rubbed the tip against him with smooth motions that ran across his entire length. His muscles twitched with the tension of aniticipation as she teased and toyed with him.

A deep gasp of surprise escaped his lungs as she broke that tension. He felt her mouth wrap around him, slowly she moved and began to take him in while still moving her hand. Winry pulled away, and would take him in deeper than before, pushing him to his limit. His muscles began to tense with her every move, and his mind began to blank with her every touch.

She brought her gaze up to him while pulling away once again.

"It's okay...Don't hold back." His expression softened as he felt every muscle in his body tighten for an instant, and then fell back onto the bed, exhausted. Winry's tongue moved along him again as he took in air; his mouth, as dry as the desert as he lay there with a limp body.

As if she knew how he felt, Winry brought her lips to his again with another passionate and wet kiss. Her hand still held him tightly, and she could feel him become aroused again just as she kissed him. Life returned to him as he felt her lips push against his.

"Are you ready for this, Ed?" she whispered. He couldn't find the words to answer her, but nodded. She held him up with her hand while moving to straddle him, and gently lowered herself onto him, feeling him pushing into her, she let out a short flinch of pain, before exhaling a breath of pleasure.

He felt her warmly wrap around him as she descended. His mind was truely blank now, not thinking rationally, just moving now on pure instinct; the warmth and ecstasy only grew as she began to move faster. His hands moved to her hips, and with a strong grip, only encouraged her to continue.

With every thrust, Winry felt her muscles melting. She let in a deep breath, and collapsed onto him. Her ear hovered just above his chest, she could hear every passionate beat that his racing heart was making; he grew concerned when she had seemingly fainted, wondering if her invention had caused some long term effects, but let all of those fears disappear as she brought her lips to his again in a loving embrace. The stimulation was overwhelming, never before had he felt this way, nor did he think that he would have someone control him like she was doing at this very moment.

But as long as it was her...He'd do anything for her.

She leaned in closer to him.

"Show me what you can do, Edward Elric." She whispered to his ear.

"Alright." He let out a breath, and let on a light smile. He placed his hands behind her thighs, and lifted her up in a single motion, without breaking their connection, he stood up.

Winry gasped as she felt him push further into her as he moved back to his feet. Her hands clasped together behind his neck, and her legs wrapped around his back as she desperately clinged onto him during this assault on her senses.

He lifted her into the air, his thrusts still filled with vigor as he held her. She felt her muscles rumble once again as her limbs gave way to ecstasy and fell to her sides. He felt his own peak being reached, with a fiercely passionate kiss, Winry managed to push him back down onto the bed, just as she felt his climax.

She pulled away from hiim to be greeted with his blissful smile, a smile that she returned.

"I love you, Winry Rockbell. And I always will."

"I love you, Edward Elric. And I always have."

...

_Sunrise_.

...

Winry blinked, and rubbed her eyes as she cleared her vision; looking down at her former alchemist, she saw peace in his expression. She rolled over to his side, kissed him lightly on the cheek, and stood up onto her feet. She quickly gathered up her clothes, sent an invisible kiss his way, and scrambled to the bathroom.

After all, the fact that they weren't alone in the house may have slipped their minds last night.

He woke up some time later, put his clothes back on, and headed towards the shower. As he stepped out, he heard Pinako's voice from behind him.

"Quite some night you had, eh?"

...

Breakfast was an even more awkward meal than the one before. The situation at the table was the same, Winry and Edward were sitting across from each other; both only avoiding eye contact with the old woman that sat at the head of the table, Pinako Rockbell, and the only one who was making a sound at the table was Den.

"Well..." Pinako started with a deep inhale of her pipe. "It seems like you two have finally grown up." she exhaled the smoke through her nostrils. They were speechless, only staring downd at their food. The only other sound they heard was Den whining. Pinako let out a smokeless breath, and opened the door for Den. "I'll be back soon." she stated while closing the door behind her.

"We were too loud last night, huh?" Winry mumbled.

"...It sure looks that way." Ed agreed.

"But...you know, she didn't say that she disapproves of it." Winry added with a hint of hope.

"...That's true." He timidly replied.

"Are you worried?"

"N-No! Why should I be?|" he replied defensively. She walked over to him and sat in the chair next to his.

"You're right. You shouldn't be worried, because there's nothing to be worried about." she smiled, and brought a hand that cupped his cheek, while looking into his eyes.

"...So what I heard last night wasn't my imagination! It actually happened!" They jumped with the sound of Pinako's voice entering the room again. She stared at them with a dead gaze that seemed to paralyze them both. "It's about damn time!" she exclaimed with a huge smile stretched across her lips.

The whole room burst into laughter at her jubilant declaration.

"I'm correct, aren't I?" she rhetorically asked them. Ed and Winry looked at each other, then shifted thier gaze to Pinako before simaltaneously answering:

"Yes."

...

After their meal, Ed found himself back in the Guest Room, he sat at the same desk he had last night. Writing a letter to Al wasn't in his initial plan, but he felt the urge to do so after he had finally did what had took him a year to do. He looked at the beautiful script that she had written Al's name in, and took a pen in his hand. He wrote down his thoughts as they appeared in his mind.

_Dear Alphonse,_

_I hope this letter finds you well, I'm sitting in Winry's house as I write this. I've returned home for some repairs and to do "that" before I lose my opportunity to do so again. And I actually did it! It's been a long time since I saw you, little brother. But I hope that you can return home one day with us. Mom and Dad haven't seen you in a while, why not pay them a visit one day._

_Winry also came up with this wacky invention that's almost like portable automail, she nearly caved my head in yesterday._

_And she started teaching herself alchemy! With her help, I was able to get my old red coat back. I hope that you're doing well._

_And I'll see you soon, Alphonse Elric._

_Sincerely,_

_-Your Older Brother, Edward Elric_

_P.S. Don't bother writing me back, I won't be here to receive it by the time you get this. Oh, and How's Xing?...Wait...Don't answer that._

_I'll see you in a few months._

_...We'll...see you in a few months._

...

_A Few Weeks Later_

...

They stood in the exact same spot that they did one year ago. The train came barreling down towards them down the railway line. Ed stood up, ready to board the train again, and make his second departure, while Pinako, Winry, and Den stood behind him.

"Be sure to send us a letter or something this time!" Pinako shouted to him. Ed nodded uneasily as the train pulled into the station. His hand rested on the train door, his right foot, in the train, his left foot, on the platform. Winry wrapped her arms around him again, and held him tightly.

"Come back soon...I'll miss you." she whispered as she kissed him. The train blew a loud whistle that signaled the remaining time to board-five minutes. He took a deep breath as they walked back and waved good-bye on the platform.

_Now, I need to do it . Now._

He turned, and looked towards Winry.

"W-Winry..."

"What is it, Ed? Speak up!" she demanded. He pulled out his hand, held it there, and spoke the three words that he couldn't speak before.

"...Come with me."

Winry froze.

She looked at Ed, still searching for an answer.

"I..." Winry looked towards Pinako, as if she was asking for permission to leave. Pinako answered with a simple smile and nod.

Winry met his eyes again with a heart-warming smile, and placed her hand into his.

...

They sat together on the train that began to pull away from the station, and waved away at Pinako and Den through the window.

"Give us a call every now and then!" Pinako's words pierced through the train's low humming.

"We will!" Winry answered through the window as the train began to pick up speed.

"They really have grown up, haven't they, Den?" Pinako asked aloud to a dog that barked in agreement.

Pinako looked towards the sky once more.

"If only you could see your kids now." She looked at Den again, and smiled. "Let's go home." Den barked again, agreeing with her.

...

Ed watched the stars passing by in the cosmic sky as the train chugged onward. At his side, Winry was fast asleep, they sat together, wrapped in a single blanket. He took in all of the events that he had experienced so far, from leaving, to returning, to leaving again, and only one thought lingered in his mind.

_Where do we go from here?_

* * *

**A/N: Thank you for joining me for another chapter of No Longer Left Behind. Now we understand where I came up with the title!**

**I don't know when the next chapter will be published, but I look forward to writing it.**

**Thanks for reading!**


	3. Money Troubles in East City

**Author's Notes: **Currency Conversion: On the Fullmetal Alchemist Wiki, it states that 1 Cenz (The Amestrian Currency) is equivalent to 1 Japanese Yen. For the sake of simplicity and writing, I won't be using this conversion.

To ensure the smoothest write and easiest read, I'll be changing that conversion to **1 Cenz = 1 USD**.

**Language and Word Usage:** Those of you who have read Chapter 2 before April 24th may have noticed that I changed "Nii-san, Edward Elric" to "Your Older Brother, Edward Elric." While I love the Japanese Dub, and it just feels wrong unless Al addresses Ed as "Nii-san" it also doesn't mesh very well with the setting itself, In the west we don't use those types of suffixes. And I once told another writer to "choose one setting (JPN or ENG) and stick with it for consistency." I might as well follow my own advice.

I'm also just going to refer to the Leader of Amestris as "President" and not "Fuhrer." No hatred for the German language or anything, but that word just brings to me images of one of the most evil human beings in history.

**WORD COUNT: 3,800**

**CHAPTER RATING: T **(Language)

**PUBLISHED ON**: **4/29/2014**

**DISCLAIMER: I do not know how long it takes Trains to travel the fictional Distance from Resembool to East City. So I'm making that number up as well.**

* * *

**Chapter 3: Money Troubles in East City**

Winry walked down the train cars, opening the door that lead back to where they had chosen to sit; carefully balanced in her hand, she held a plate, the contents protected by an aluminum cover. She slipped back into their booth, and took a seat across from the still sleeping Edward Elric. He snored lightly, with his head leaned against the glass of the train window, his breath creating a circle of mist on the clear panel.

_He's so peaceful...So defenseless when he's asleep._ She thought to herself while the train chugged onward. However, her momentary peace was broken by a realization that had slipped her mind, thanks to Ed's abrupt proposal for her to join him.

"Ed…" She whispered. "Ed…Wake up…" She continued to his light snoring. A thump came from under the table that separated them.

"OW!" He snapped awake. "Why the hell did you kick me?" He asked while rubbing his leg. "That hurts, you know, it hurts even more since one of the legs is artificial and the other's not, the nerves pile up!"

She kicked him again.

"Damn it, Winry!" he spat. "What is it?"

"It's your fault." She whispered, and shot an annoyed look his way.

"What's my fault?" he continued to rub his aching leg.

"Doesn't there seem to be something missing here?" She held her arms out for emphasis. He looked over at her side of the booth, then over at his side of the booth. Her gaze just dove deeper into annoyance. "…You don't realize what's missing?"

He looked over onto the table.

"…I don't have any food…?" She kicked him again, causing him to flinch in pain.

"No, you idiot! Look again!" He looked again, and it was like a light had just been turned on in a room that he had forgotten about.

"Winry…You don't have any bags…"

She let his words hang in the air for a few seconds.

"Yes…Genius! And it's all because of _YOU!_" She shouted. Ed's eyes filled with embarrassment as he noticed other passengers gazing his way.

"W-Why?" He asked, still confused and extremely embarrassed at the scene that she was making. Winry looked around to notice that the other passengers were indeed, tuning in for the free show that they were putting on.

"You really don't know why?" She suppressed her voice into a sharp whisper. _"You really don't know why?"_

"Winry, if you want to tell me something, just be straightforward-"

"I don't have any clothes, I don't have any tools, and I don't have any money!" She venomously whispered. "If you hadn't decided to ask me to join you so abruptly, then I would have at least had some time to prepare for this trip, but thanks to you, I have nothing!"

"Abruptly? It took me a year to finally ask you that!" He laughed, and saw her eyebrows twitching with annoyance at his attempt lessen the severity of the situation.

"It's not funny, Ed! What are we going to do?"

"Just calm down, Winry. Don't forget that I was once part of the State Military; I get a regular pension, 3500 Cenz a week. We'll get it all sorted out when we reach East City, so, just calm down…Alright?"

"Are you sure, that's only 500 Cenz a day. How is that enough of a budget to live off of?"

"Some days are cheaper than other days." He smirked while leaning his head back. "Wait…Don't you get royalties for your automail sales in Rush Valley?"

"I don't have my bank information with me."

"Oh…Okay, we'll call home and ask for it later. So, don't worry." He gave her a carefree smile and leaned his head back. "Might as well eat up, we'll be there soon." She pushed the plate over to his side of the booth.

"Actually, Ed…That's for you." She whispered with a smile. "So…Go ahead. Eat up."

He brought his gaze back to hers and expressed suspicious gratitude with his eyes.

"Thanks Winry…How did you manage to pay for it?"

"I used the little bit of money I had on hand." She replied.

"I'll pay you back for it, I promise." He smiled while reaching for the aluminum cover and pulling it aside.

"Oh...don't worry about it, Ed. It's on me." She slyly added.

"…" He glared at what was on his plate, and stared back up at her. "…What the hell is this?"

Winry burst out in laughter at his reaction; his annoyance grew exponentially with every breath she took. But he couldn't help himself, her soft and hardly laughter was contagious, and soon, he was laughing with her.

On his plate, was a single carton of milk.

"You do know that milk only helps with growth during infancy, right?" He asked while opening the carton. "But here's how devoted I am to you." He raised the container into the air, as if he was giving a toast, before painfully bringing it to his lips, and began drinking.

"It's nice to know how far you'd go for me." She smiled.

…

"East City!" A voice echoed through the train's speakers. "East City in 2 minutes!" it called out again, as the train began to slow its acceleration. Ed was gagging as the white opaque liquid ran down his throat. In a single gulp he wiped away the mustache of milk he had, and slammed the cardboard carton back onto the porcelain plate.

"There!" He shouted with a deep breath. "Done!" He added with unfocused, lifeless eyes, as if every sip took out every bit of life he still had in him. Winry brought her hand towards him and wrapped it around his.

"I won't forget the sacrifices you've made for me." She solemnly added.

They burst out in laughter again as Ed pulled her onto her feet with a firm grip.

"Are you ready to go?" He asked.

"After sitting down for that long, I wouldn't mind just walking around for a bit." She replied.

"We can do that…We actually need to do that. After all, you don't have any clothes or tools in case this thing breaks down." He said as he slapped his automail leg.

They had been travelling for over sixteen hours, the sun was high in the sky, and the streets of East City were bustling with life. The trains station itself was crowded with groups of people who were rushing to board the train. Winry felt Ed's hand wrap around hers tightly.

"Ed, what are you doing?" She whispered through the voices of others. He looked back to her with a face full of confidence that made her blush.

"I'm not willing to lose you, Winry. Hang on." He ordered while pulling her with every step that he took. As he led her through the crowded platform, they bumped into other patrons, almost as if they were all in a mosh pit. Luckily, they exited the busy station within a few minutes and found themselves standing in a less-crowded street, with a few stores located in various locations; and at the end of that road, there was the East City Bank.

"Hello sir, how can I help you today?" The Bank teller acknowledged Ed as he walked up to the window.

"Hello, I'd like to withdraw some money from the account of retired State Alchemist Edward Elric." He handed her a request form and his silver pocket watch. "Here's my identification."

"Very good sir, if you'd just give me a few minutes." She turned around, and walked behind another wall to what Ed could only assume was the bank's vault.

"Does it usually take this long?" Winry asked as after ten minutes.

"No, there may be a problem." He replied. The teller returned after some amount of time.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Elric. But we could not withdraw the amount that you requested from the account, would you like to withdraw the maximum amount that you currently posses?"

"…Sure. Thank you." He uneasily replied. The teller slipped an envelope towards him.

"Come again." She politely added before waving goodbye. They exited the bank and stopped just outside the door.

"What happened?" Winry asked.

"It looks like I spent too much in the last few weeks before we left…" He sighed deeply and hung his head low. He opened the envelope to see one bill, worth fifty Cenz. "What can we do on a budget like that…?"

"Is there any way to get a hold of Granny? I'm sure that I have some funds in my account."

He entered the bank again and returned with a few quarters in change. Winry sent out a call back home.

"Winry, it's been wonderful!" Pinako greeted Winry on the other end of the line. "Where are you two?"

"We're in East City. Listen, Grandma. We've run out of money. I need my bank information; can you give it to me?"

"Of course! Just give me a few minutes." Winry heard the rustling of papers over before Pinako spoke again. "Okay, are you ready?"

Winry wrote down her information as Pinako recited it. After thanking her grandmother, she did the same thing that Ed did. When she opened the envelope, she too, was surprised.

"It's even worse than yours…" She said depressingly. "I only have twenty Cenz." Her head hung lower than his. "What are we going to do…?"

"Well, there is one more option…" Ed said with a deep breath. "But we'll have to deal with…_him._" He turned and looked towards the Military HQ of East City. Chills ran down his spine as he recalled every encounter that he had with Roy Mustang during his time as a State Alchemist. "It's like I've come crawling back to him because I'm so desperate." He took another sigh.

"Let go of that pride you have, Ed." She smiled at him with a small punch to his shoulder.

"Don't remind me." He whispered back. "Alright, let's go. Let's go see how he takes my pride and my dignity."

"It won't be that bad." She pushed him forward towards the building and smiled.

...

"Halt! Who are you, and what is your business here?" A guard standing outside the HQ questioned them while they approached. Ed reached into his back pocket while walking up to him and pulled out his silver watch.

"Former State Alchemist, Edward Elric, I need to talk to Brigadier General Mustang." He slipped the watch back into his pocket.

"Welcome, Sir!" The guard saluted. "But I'm afraid that your friend won't be allowed to enter!" He added. Winry looked almost offended by his words.

"Don't worry about her." Ed reassured the guard. "She's my mechanic. I need her in case anything unfortunate happens." He pulled up his pants leg and revealed his automail limb. Winry smiled innocently as he spoke. "Are we all clear?"

"Yes, Sir!" the guard enthusiastically answered before turning and waving to the gatekeeper, who responded by pressing a button, causing the gate to the HQ to slide open."Please don't cause any trouble on your visit, Sir."

Ed nodded blankly as he walked through the gate. He stepped into the main building after saluting the guards at the door, and stepped into the pristine structure that was East City Military Headquarters, Lead by Brigadier General Roy Mustang.

"This place is bigger than I thought." Winry whispered to him while they walked the halls, looking for the correct office. Every wood door perfectly contrasted against the marble-white walls, offices were addressed by person with a gold nameplate beside every door, and they could look down at their own reflections thanks to the polished wood floor.

"For being the Flame Alchemist, he sure based a lot of this building in wood." Ed whispered to her under his breath. Winry smiled at his comment.

_Still the same smart-ass as always._ She thought.

"You disprove of my architect's designs, Fullmetal?" A voice shot out from behind them.

"You can't call me that anymore, General!" Ed shouted back as he turned around. He held out his hand, and Roy shook it heartily.

"Welcome back, I haven't seen you in a long time, and it's not like you to drop by, is there something you need?"

"Yeah...There is actually."

As they spoke, Winry gently bowed her head.

"It's nice to see you again. Winry." Riza held out her hand.

"It's nice to see you again too." Winry shook her hand and smiled.

...

Mustang sat behind a desk, his expression hidden by his white ignition gloves that were clasped together in front of his face with his elbows resting on the desk. Hawkeye stood diligently at his side.

"That's all?" He asked bluntly.

"Yes, we just need a few days worth of money and a place to stay until we can make our way to Central."

"We can arrange it." Mustang reassured him. "But, as you know, we have our own expenses and problems that we have to deal with." Ed nervously nodded. "I can provide you with a place to rest, and a large sum of money, enough for you to get to get all the tools you need, make the trip to Central, and spend all the money you can when you get there. But we need you to do something for us…What do you think?"

"…What is it?" Ed took a deep breath.

"Are you sure?" Mustang asked again.

"…It's not like I have a choice." Ed replied again with a closed fist, and a worried look at Winry.

"Lieutenant." Mustang ordered with a wave of his hand.

"Winry, come with me." She ordered. Winry stared at confusion at her, before nodding blankly, following, and looking back at Ed.

"Don't worry, Winry. I'll figure this out." He said with a smile.

"I know you will." She said before Hawkeye dragged her out of the room.

The door slammed close behind them, and Ed heard Mustang's voice again.

"…Your girlfriend?" Mustang asked abruptly.

"My...Mechanic" Ed replied after a pause.

"Very well, here is my proposal." Mustang started while he pulled out a map of East City. "One year has passed since you've left the country."

"How do you know that?" Ed interrupted.

"You think that after a crisis that we faced, we wouldn't tighten security on our citizens?" Roy retorted.

Ed nodded, it did seem logical.

"Now then, it's been one year since you've left the country; and while the military hasn't forgotten your great achievement. Regular people aren't very keen on remembering the heroes of the past." Mustang's voice changed from his usual condescending tone to one of genuine appreciation. "I am truly grateful for what you have done. You saved us all."

Ed sat in silence, he expected to hear many things from Roy Mustang, but he didn't expect this.

"You are the savior of this nation, and I ask you once again, to help us. The task is not as monumental, and will be kept in a low profile. But we could use your help to ensure the safety of the citizens in the East."

"What is it that you need me for?" Ed replied. "I don't have my alchemy anymore, but how could you use me?"

"Anonymity." Mustang replied. "Twelve months, and many others have forgotten who you are, we may need to do some things with your outfit. Perhaps trade that red coat for a plain brown one."

"People did tell me that this outfit was very flashy." Ed nodded.

"It is." Mustang agreed. "We'll have to get you something that isn't as distinctive." Mustang pointed to a small shop on the street corner of the map. "This shop was opened a while ago by a family from Xing." Mustang took a deep breath. "While we trust the Emperor, and are currently working out a trade agreement, we are well aware that there may secret militant groups that aren't working for the Emperor, but for their own gains."

"General, I thought you were here to help other people! You can't just assume that they're committing crimes just because they come from a different country…Just because they're different people!" Ed slammed his fist onto the table. "If you're trying to lead these people to a better future, you can't have that sort of mentality!"

Mustang snapped his fingers and lit a small fire in the air.

"Listen to me, Fullmetal!" He shouted with a deep anger. "Don't you accuse me of hatred against another people until you hear the entire story!" He pointed an angry finger towards the rather impulsive former-alchemist. "Now, relax. This isn't a cultural issue, this isn't a racial issue, this is an issue of security."

"Forgive me." Ed apologized while bowing his head.

"In time." He accepted with a calm voice. "We have only kept our eyes on this place recently, that's when odd things began to happen."

"Odd? How odd?"

"We've seen people go into the shop…We've seen people come out of the shop." Mustang took another deep breath. "Four people go into the shop…Four different people come out of the shop."

Ed sat in silence.

"That's why we need you. We know you personally, so if anything changes you, we'll know; with the added fact that the shopkeepers don't know who you are, you are the one chance we have to see if there is anything suspicious going on in that shop."

"When?"

"Tonight."

"I just ask one thing: Keep Winry safe while I'm gone."

"No harm will come to her whatsoever. We'll set you up in a room to rest, and she'll be kept safe under strict watch from our finest guards."

"You've got a deal, General Mustang." Ed stood up while holding out his hand.

"It's good to have you back, Major Edward Elric." Mustang replied while accept Ed's hand and shaking it.

…

"Lieutenant Hawkeye." Winry whispered as she was assisted out of the room.

"I told you that you could call me Riza." She replied with a smile.

"Riza…Why can't I hear what Ed has to do?" Winry asked.

"It's regulation." Hawkeye replied in her calm tone of voice. "We aren't allowed to discuss missions with others who aren't involved with the military."

"I see…" Winry answered.

"Are you worried?"

Winry didn't answer.

"Don't worry." Riza replied with a smile and a pat on the back. "He's faced many more daunting things before. He'll be fine."

"You're right." Winry nodded.

The door began to open as soon as their conversation finished. Ed's smile met Winry's.

"Lieutenant!" Mustang ordered. "Show these two to the high ranking suites in the West Wing!"

"Yes, Sir!" Hawkeye saluted before turning to the two and smiling. "Follow me."

"Suites in the West Wing?" Ed asked as they walked down the halls.

"I guess no one told you?" Hawkeye answered with another question. "Any officer gets to spend as much time as he or she wants in any of those rooms, as long as they have proof of service."

Edward and Winry just looked at each other in disbelief.

_And now I've still got to do this mission that he put on me._

…

Ed and Winry spent the rest of the day buying the necessities that Winry was missing: New clothes, new tools, and enough food for them to go to bed on full stomachs. They spent the entire day as if they were tourists, visiting various shops, enjoying the sights, and meeting new people. But Edward made sure to never step anywhere near the shop that he had to infiltrate.

The time they spent seemed so fulfilling, before they knew it, the sun was setting, and they were both sitting on the bed. Ed sat looking at the floor, his left hand rubbing the scar that he had gotten during his failed transmutation.

"Ed? Is everything alright?" Winry called from the bathroom.

"Yeah, it's fine. Don't worry." He called back. "Winry, would you mind taking a look at my leg?"

"Sure." She replied while entering the room. Pulling up a chair, she extended his leg onto it and sat down on another chair. She looked down it, and reached into her toolbox. "Regular maintenance." She tightened any loose screws, checked for any rust, scratches or dents, and added polish to restore the metallic shine.

She brought her smile up and met his eyes with hers.

"Don't go breaking it now." She added.

"I won't, I promise." He replied.

…

Midnight approached. The lights from the city had all died down. The only glowing embers in the dark came from the Military HQ, and the small shop that Ed was going to investigate.

_Yeah…That's not suspicious._

He quietly stood up from the bed, careful to not disturb the beauty that lay next to him, and dressed himself in his plain black clothing with Mustang's advised brown coat. As slowly as he could, he folded up his treasured red jacket, and reached over to place it on the cabinet as he turned the doorknob to exit the room.

"Ed?" A sleepy voice stopped him in his tracks. "Where are you going?" Her voice mixed with the compressing springs of the mattress. He stood to face her as she approached him in her nightgown. Winry cleared her vision by rubbing her eyes and blinking.

"I need to do what General Mustang asked me to do." He answered. "I need to do it tonight." He held the jacket in his hands. "I'll be back for this. Until then, keep it safe for me." He pushed it towards her. Winry took hold of the jacket and placed it on the cabinet. She smiled and moved closer to him.

Before he knew it, he felt her lips meet his in a warm, loving embrace. She wrapped her hands around his hair, and pulled away.

"Come back to me, soon." She whispered.

As her lips released their grasp from his, he took a deep breath into his nostrils; feeling her lips against his almost brought new life into him, a new vitality and confidence that he could do and would do anything to make it back to her.

"I will. I promise." He nodded as he stepped out into the hallway. She took hold of his hand and stopped him.

"Wait Ed…" She pulled him back into the room, and reached into the cabinet. "Take this." She wrapped his palm around the metallic ball that she had created. "Just in case anything goes wrong."

"Just in case." He smiled warmly while stepping out into the hallway.

…

Winry watched as he exited the room, she followed the sound of his footsteps as they moved down the hallway; moving towards the window, she watched a single figure move into the shadow of the night, and then meld into the night before her eyes.

_Come back to me…please._

* * *

A/N: It took a while to figure out what was in that shop…Tune in next time to find out what is in that shop!

And, as always…

**Thanks for Reading!**


	4. Follower of the White Fox

**Author's Notes: if you are reading this, but have never read any of my two other Naruto stories... I want to take this small blurb to tell you that yes, that second genre is "drama" and you will **_**hate**_** me by the time this story is over. I guarantee it! But I will ALWAYS love you...Unless you hurt me dearly. Ha ha!**

**WORD COUNT: 3,821**

**CHAPTER RATING: T **(Violence, Language)

**PUBLISHED ON**: **5/8/2014**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't actually know how to use disclaimer.**

* * *

**Chapter 4: Followers of the White Fox**

Slowly he walked into the night; the only sources of light came from the yellow hue of the military building, and the red glow of the distinctive Xingese lanterns that hung above the entrance to the store, named 'The White Fox.' The blood-red light only reminded him off the philosopher's stone, and it tied a knot in his stomach as he held on tightly to the gift-or rather, the weapon that Winry gave to him on his way out: it rested comfortably in his palm within the white gloves he wore, his right hand balled up into a fist to conceal it the best he could.

Ed reached for the door knob, surprised that he could turn it with such ease, but realized his stupidity when he remembered that the shop was indeed, open. Immediately as he opened the door, the stench of burning incense rushed at him and pushed out through the opening. But the strong scent still dominated the inside of the building as he stepped inside.

He immediately began to scan the room for anything suspicious. Looking around, he caught sight of nothing that was grossly out of place, and nothing could serve as viable evidence to neither warrant an arrest nor support any kind of investigation. The store merely sold goods that seemed to be direct imports from Xing: an entire section dedicated to noodles, specialized Eastern medicine, and colorful trinkets and statues of a dragon that came in all shapes and sizes.

He saw all of these things, but he didn't see anyone else.

_Kind of strange to leave a business unattended at this hour._ He thought to himself.

Just as the thought entered his mind, he heard shuffling from the door behind the counter. It opened, and he prepared his best PokerFace. Emerging from the door was one of the most attractive women he had ever seen. She wore a red dress that left no part of her figure to the imagination. In fact, the only reason he assumed it was a dress was that she was a woman, but in reality, it closely resembled a robe. Her hair was tied into a bun, with-from what Ed could see, was two black chopsticks.

"Hello." She began with a bow. "How can i help you today?"

If he could speak his mind, he would be saying nothing, because he didn't have any real excuse for why he was here.

"Uhh...Yeah, I'm looking for some medicine for the pain that I have in my right shoulder." He rubbed the scar from his previous automail arm, and as stealthily as he could he moved his right arm and left leg in synchronized motions, causing a creaking sound that he hoped she would fall for. "Automail has its own problems."

"I've got just what you need." She answered politely while crouching down behind the counter and rummaging through the unseen contents. She brought forth a small root and an equally small cup. "This is called the Jahring Root." She dropped the herb into the cup and poured in steaming hot water from a kettle into the cup. "It's a natural herb from Xing that relieves muscle and joint pain."

Ed nervously stood in silence while waiting for a remedy that he didn't actually need; with his nervous posture came with an uncertain grin. Her welcoming smile felt genuinely kind-hearted, but he knew he had to keep up his guard. A few minutes passed by before she removed the root with a pair of small tweezers, and offered him the cup.

"Thank you." Ed gratefully took it.

"It's a pleasure." She replied with a bow. He brought the cup to his lips and feigned drinking from it. He knew that he couldn't wholly trust her, but he honestly didn't know what to do at this point, the last thing he was expecting was a confrontation with someone.

"Thanks. I can feel the pain easing away already." Ed lied. From behind him, he heard the door open and shut again. His blood froze as he felt the intangible sense of dread raise the hairs on the back of his neck. "You know what? I think I'll just leave." Ed placed the cup back onto the counter and began to turn around. In an instant, he swung the fist of his left hand; it was caught by a large man who smiled darkly at him.

"We welcome you, Fullmetal alchemist Edward Elric."

Immediately Ed shifted his weight to his left leg, and swung his right leg towards the man's side, it connected with a loud thrash; but the man had Ed's leg in his grasp, and tightened his grip around it before sweeping him off his feet. The air rushed out of Ed's lungs as his head hit the floor; and his breath didn't return to him, as he felt the man's large hands begin to wrap around his neck. His grip tightened, and Ed tried his best to fight off the man, punching at his sides and trying to bring his knee towards the man's mid section, but his position was too weak and soon, he felt the world begin to fade. He loosened his boot, and delivered a glass-shattering kick with his automail limb directly in between the man's legs.

He heard a howl of intense pain in a high-pitched voice only fitting for a choir of school children. Ed tried his best to scramble to his feet, until he felt a sharp heel press into his chest, and a jagged blade resting on his neck.

"Stop right there." The woman from behind the counter spat at him."You don't want to die tonight, do you?"

Ed took a deep breath, and let his arms fall to his sides.

"Good." She smiled. "Do it." She ordered the man who was still recovering after Ed's assault. He stepped forward and lifted his leg. Ed's world went black as he felt the boot collide with the side of his head.

Ed didn't know how much time passed when he woke up. His blurred eyes opened and focused on the wooden floor when he regained his bearings. Looking down, he saw a rope wrapped around him, his hands were bound behind him, and he was seated in a chair. Ed struggled to free himself, and could feel his hands loosen with every movement, but stopped when he saw someone step up to him.

"What do we have here…?" A voice spoke. Ed looked up to see the same man that had confronted him earlier.

"Ha…You know who I am." Ed replied in a low tone. He threw his head back slightly to look up at the small light bulb that lit the dark room. "So…What is it that you have going on in this place? Are you smuggling drugs? Dealing out weapons? What's the operation?"

"Silence, Amestrian, you are in no position to be asking questions." He spoke. "You will answer my questions." He clenched a fist, and placed it up to Ed's face, it spanned the entirety of his head.

"You're a big guy, aren't you?" Ed smirked.

"You're sense of urgency seems to be lacking. You don't seem to be aware of your current situation." He raised his leg, and delivered a kick directly into Ed's midsection, which caused the air to rush out of his lungs again, and then delivered a punch that caused Ed to crane his neck dangerously to the side, a shot that could cause a severe concussion rang through his ears.

"Now, you will cooperate with us, or do you still not realize the situation you are in?" Ed's ears were ringing and his breathing was heavy as the man offered his ultimatum. With his head raised again, Ed let a sinister smile cross his lips before he spat into the man's face.

"I've been through worse things that you couldn't even imagine." The large man slowly wiped the spit from his face, growing even more impatient and annoyed at Ed's rebellious spirit.

"Fine." He lifted a foot and placed it on the chair, with a swift kick, he pushed it back, and Ed soon found himself looking up at the low-hanging ceiling, he looked to his sides, and saw to transmutation circles. The man waved his hand, and Ed saw the woman in the red dress come into his view. She was dressed in black armor that resembled the armor that Lan Fan had worn.

She brought forth a blade, and slowly let it run across his ribcage, carving a deep wound in his side. Ed flinched at the pain that ripped at him, and cried out desperately in pain. He began to bleed profusely at the large wound at his side. The woman then bent down and touched the circle, it shined with a brilliant blue hue. And the pain was even more excruciating as the wound began to close, but did so by pulling his remaining skin to close the gap.

He gave no answers.

They did this three more times.

The wounds were deep, and the healing was shallow.

Soon, he had four large scars running around his body from his chest to his back.

But Ed didn't give them any information.

"Very well. We have other methods to make you talk. Hold him up." She ordered. He was roughly pulled up into the sitting position again. She took hold of his chin and pointed it towards the door. "Talk, or she will pay the ultimate price."

Before him, they brought a woman with her hands bound on front of her. She wore her usual yellow tank top, black jacket and ebony skirt. His jaw dropped in surprise and disappointment.

"Why... I told you to stay back, why did you come here?" His head dropped.

"I'm sorry, Ed. I was just worried about you." Winry replied "Just tell them what they want to hear, and then we can leave." She pleaded.

He let her words hang in the air as she finished, and then smirked.

"Stop the bullshit." His smirk grew larger. "She's been worried and waiting her whole life, but always stayed back when I asked her to." He laugh as he saw anger grow within her eyes.

"You're very perceptive, Mr. Elric." She spoke in Winry's voice. "And you've seen through my ruse." She brought her hand to her face and looked away; with a swipe, she turned around, and Ed saw that she was no longer Winry Rockbell, but another woman from Xing.

"You've got an amazing trick there, sister." He still smirked while flinching in pain. "It reminds me of a monster that I had to fight a while back. But Envy sure as hell did a better job than you did…Just what the hell are you?" She smiled at his request and pulled a chair up in front of him.

"I'm so glad that thou decided to ask." She replied while taking a seat."We are followers of the White Fox." She opened her arms towards the others who were around her. "We are the Huli-Jing."

" So mister Mustard was right! You are some militant group from Xing!" He laughed "We haven't been formally introduced, what's your name?" Ed tried his best to keep up his bluff.

"Why did you come here? We know who sent you. What does he want?" She demanded.

"I don't know what you're talking about." He let out weakly. She reared back her steel-plated fist, and struck his face. He spat blood on the floor and offered another grin. "I don't know what the hell you're talking about."

"Fine." She replied in deep frustration. "We still have one more trick up our sleeves." She smirked as she brought her face to her palm. "You said her name was... Winry Rockbell? Good to know. You won't be seeing her again."

When she revealed her face to him again, Ed saw a mirror image of himself looking down towards him, and sat in stunned silence.

"Farewell, Edward Elric." He heard his own voice address him before he felt another force strike his head, and he lost consciousness again.

…

He stayed motionless, unaware of how much time had passed since he regained his wits, awake but still, listening to the rumbling and rambling of the two people who had held him captive. In his glove, he held the small sphere that Winry had given him in the palm of his hand; He waited silently for a chance to act, waiting for the two comfortable Xing Warriors to drop their guard. They turned their backs, and he could hear them speaking to each other in a dialect that he didn't understand.

Ed smiled as he realized that now was the time. With smooth and subtle movements, he moved his fingers and pressed the top of the button. The automail began to form, slowly and silently it encased his arm within the flexible steel. It felt just like his old automail arm was returning, and it fit like a glove. Even though he hadn't had any automail arm for the last year or so, his muscles did not forget how the sensation of automail, after all, he had his automail arm for the last six years.

He felt the steel slowly creep up his arm, and he found a new strength in his grasp. His bonds were loosening, and in a long, subtle pull, he ripped apart the rope that held his arms in place. The two warriors were still unaware of his attempts to escape as he shot up to his feet, ripped apart the ropes that held his arms, and lunged directly towards the large man and planted his own steel-encased fist directly into his face.

The woman gasped and went to draw her blade. Ed stopped her halfway, holding the hilt of the sword, keeping the blade in the sheath.

"Sorry sister, but you fucked with the wrong Amestrian." He said as he bend the hilt and broke the hardened steel, letting the hilt fall to the ground. He immediately brought up his left leg and stuck her in the midsection, knocking the air out of her until he reared back his right, steel fist and punched her directly in the face, letting her body fall to the floor.

"You're dead!" The man shouted while raising his own sword and bringing it down onto Ed, who brought his hand up and blocked the blade with his steel palm. In a swift motion, he closed his hand, and the blade crumbled into pieces, the shards of steel fell onto the ground. Ed kicked the man's leg, causing him to drop to one knee. In a swift motion, he twisted his own hips, and let the force carried by his legs strike the man in the side of the head.

"What did you do to me?" Ed said sinisterly while he looked down at the sight of the man lying on his stomach. "Oh...Yeah, I remember." Ed lifted his foot, kicked off his boot, and delivered a concrete-breaking stomp into the back of the man's head. "Sleep tight." he said to the unconscious body.

Immediately, he ran towards the Eastern HQ. Every step he took felt like a whole hour, with the thoughts that were racing through his head, making up worse case scenarios, and only worse case scenarios. Hopefully, Winry would have known that the Edward she met last night wasn't him.

"Hold!" The same guard as before shouted.

"Don't stop me!" Ed shouted back.

"I need you to identify yourself!" The guard ordered

"What the hell are you talking about?! I was here last night! Edward Elric! Here's my proof!" Ed reached into his back pocket, and to his dismay found that his silver watch was gone. "Look, you've got to listen to me; I'm the former State alchemist! I-"

From the corner of his eye, he saw his savior. General Mustang and Lieutenant Hawkeye were just exiting the building.

"General!" Ed called out.

"Fullmetal? What are you doing back here? You just left with your mechanic. The train's leav-"

The whistle from the steam train pierced through the air, signaling that it was departing.

"Shit! General, that wasn't me!" Ed took a deep breath and rubbed his temples. "Wait... I have an Idea."

…

"Keep shoveling! We're almost there!" Ed shouted to the engineer. He stood at the head of a train. A very small train…In fact it wasn't even a full train, there were no cars, no extensions, only a single segment with enough components, coal and a single engineer to keep it running.

"We're getting closer!" Ed called out again as the Engineer kept shoveling the coal, the heat that came from the train's fire was overbearing, causing sweat to stream from out of his pores. Sure, the "train" that Mustang had transmuted was only a single conductor's compartment wasn't a full sized locomotive, but it was small enough to obtain and maintain a speed that was needed to catch up with the train that had just departed.

Ed took a deep breath, extended his arm and leapt forward.

His now bare right arm, grasped on tightly to the back railing of the train as he took hold of it and pulled himself forward. His right foot landed on the train's platform, and he hung on desperately as his left leg dragged behind, floating above the rails, inches from getting caught in the wooden planks, and dragging him down.

He took another desperate breath before looking back towards the conductor that was now shrinking in the distance. He waved away with a smile, and turned towards the first train car. He opened the car door, and saw something that immediately told him that the person sitting in the seat a few feet away…was him.

He saw his own red jacket.

He slowly started to walk up to the middle image of himself in the nearly empty train car.

"So... You found me." His own voice spoke to him. Brown-jacket Ed instinctively took a step backward as Red-jacket Ed rose to his feet. "Now then…What are we going to do?"

"I'm going to kick your ass, and beat every single bit of information out of you." Ed sharply replied.

"I'm afraid I can't let that happen; because unfortunately, you were just too late." Red-jacket Ed opened his palm, and let a ball roll out of his sleeve. It exploded violently, blinding Ed in a mist of black smoke. Rubbing his eyes, Ed looked forward and found that he was now alone in the train car.

The door ahead of him creaked open.

"You were just a little…too late." He heard the voice call out again, and as his vision cleared, he saw the Xing Warrior holding a bound and gagged Winry Rockbell, with uncertainty and fear in her eyes.

"You…bitch!" Ed shouted in anger, he half-stepped forward.

"Wait! I don't think you want to do that." She brought out a needle and brought it to Winry's neck. "Just back away." She ordered.

"Let her go!" Ed bargained. "She has nothing to do with this?"

"Nothing? Don't you understand what a hostage is for? She _is_ all of this!" She said with a smile. "But fine…I do admire the love that you have for your 'mechanic'…So, here you are." She brought her hand, and swiftly struck Winry's neck, while pushing her forward.

Ed leapt to Winry's aid as the Xing Warrior fled out the train car. Ed threw his hands out and caught Winry as she fell. He held her tightly in his arms, and ran his bare hand across her cheek; he noticed that she was still breathing. He gasped in relief, until he heard the sound of glass cracking.

He looked behind him, and saw his red jacket fly into the train. He gently placed Winry into a chair, and walked over to it. Panic rose in his mind as he heard a hissing sound, and pulled the jacket away to reveal that the hissing sound came from a bomb that was folded into the jacket itself.

Without hesitation, he brought Winry back to her feet, and picked her up with his arms. He kicked through the train car door, and busted into the next car.

"Get down!" He yelled as he fell backward into the train, and heard the grenade explode, sending a shockwave that pushed dust into the train car. He looked through the open door, and saw the car that he was just in, torn in half.

"Tell the conductor to stop the train!" Ed ordered as he found another empty seat and laid Winry down. "Is anyone here a doctor?!" He asked.

A man ran up to him and began checking Winry's vitals. Ed stood up again. "Please, take care of her." He pleaded. The man didn't stop, doing his best to take care of the unconscious, yet still living, mechanic.

Ed walked out to the edge of the car, to find a piece of paper harshly nailed into the side of the train, and attached to that, was his silver watch.

"We're always watching…You are never safe, Fullmetal Alchemist." He silently read aloud to himself. He crumpled the paper in his hand as the train gradually came to a stop.

…

He sat next to her hospital bed, anxiously twiddling his fingers, waiting for her to wake up as he constantly took in the sounds of the military hospital. He heard her shifting, and turned to see her blinking, and met his eyes with hers.

"Ed...?" She whispered weakly.

"Winry…! You're awake!" He exclaimed while jumping towards her. She balled up her fist and struck him harshly in the face. He recoiled in surprise and fell onto the floor.

"How do I know you're actually Ed?!" She screamed at him. He gently rubbed his cheek in pain and reached into his back pocket. He opened his palm and showed her the small automail sphere, with a flesh and blood right hand.

"Sorry." She looked at him with surprise and a slight blush of embarrassment, before she opened her arms to him.

"It's alright. As long as you're safe." He said as he embraced her warmly.

…

Her injuries were minimal, and her recovery was swift. Before they knew it, they were exiting the hospital, and the sound of a giant crowd brought them in front of the same shop that Ed had infiltrated.

The building was blackened in ash, the entire scene held the stench of burning incense.

"It looks like they covered their tracks." Ed whispered. His hand tightened around hers as he pulled her with him while heading back to the military headquarters.

"Ed…Wait, what happened?" Winry asked.

"I'll tell you later, for now; we need to talk to General Mustang."

"Why?"

"We need to get our things organized, we're leaving soon."

"Central?"

"Xing."

* * *

**Thanks for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 44**

**You're probably wondering why there's an update to a story that is actually complete.**

**Well, I'll tell you. As I've said before: this is the best piece of writing I've ever made.**

**I checked the status of _Cherry Blossoms in the Wind a _few days ago, and was ecstatic when I found that it had been added to a community!**

**Then I saw what community it joined. "Reportable Lemons."**

**Well then, let's cut the bullshit politeness.**

**The best story I've ever written is going to be reported, and probably removed. I'll probably be banned, and well, i'm angry.**

**I'm angry because the shit that I write is cleaner than most of the shit that you'll find here, and yet I got picked? In the entirety of this story, I have never used words like "cock" "pussy" "ass" or "dick" until now; and those aren't even being used in a sexual context.**

**I'm even angrier at the fact that when... Not if... I get banned, it won't be on my own terms. It's always more comforting walking out the door than being kicked out.**

**And that's what I want to do, walk out on my own terms.**

**Which brings to mind a user's account summary, which reads like this:**

**_Fuck this place you can all eat a bag of dicks and get AIDS. i'm never coming back._**

**And, as regrettable as it is, maybe I'll be doing the same.**

**Don't get me wrong, what i said in the afterword still stands. I love the audience that stayed with me through all of this. But if you don't hear from me again, I'll be over at a place when it's okay to write a clean romantic story without having to wade through some vague rating system that doesn't make any damn sense.**

**Maybe we'll cross paths again one day.**

**Until then, I wish you the best of luck, and all the happiness in the world.**

**-Michael "WanderingRurouni" Vang**


	6. Good-bye, But we'll meet again

So, for the first time in a long time, my inbox was flooded with messages.

**For those of you who care:**

**Wattpad**: You can find me under the same unsername

**Ficwad**: Same here too, WanderingRurouni

**deviantART**: unfortunately, someone has already taken the username(the only other time this has happened was on Youtube)

I'm also looking to see if I can get into **An Archive of Our Own.**

I'm going to experiment with the sites and see which one I prefer, then I'll stick to it. If you're looking to see which one I prefer...Well, I'll update all of them at the same time, telling you which one I will be using.

I'm Looking forward to seeing which one of these three sites I'll be posting on.

**Thank you all for how supportive and caring you are, as I've said before: Not even my closest friends would have come with me on this journey..**

**Goodbye for now. But...I hope I see you on the other side.**

**-Michael "WanderingRurouni" Vang**


	7. My Final Word

If you're still interested, you can find me here from now on.

_**Wattpad.**_

_**An Archive of Our Own.**_

_Same Username._

_Same Avatar._

_Same Stories._

This is my Final Word. It's been an honor, and a pleasure.


End file.
